In the beginning
by WithoutChains
Summary: Scorpius Malfoy is finally going to Hogwarts. An unlikely friendship forms between him and the dark-haird boy he meets on the train. This is the story of their first year. Sorry for any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes, english isn't my first language.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

He had finally found an empty compartment. With a sigh and a fluttering stomach Scorpius slumped down in the surprisingly comfortable seat, his trunk on the floor in front of him. Outside, people were shouting and laughing and crying. Saying goodbye and "See you at Christmas" and "You better write to your mother, Timmy. You know how she worries about you."

Some of the older kids were already in their school-uniforms. Prefects, Scorpius guessed. One of them, a blue-haired girl with freckles looked through the window into his compartment. She smiled, and then kept walking. His stomache wouldn't stop churning, and he felt himself breathing in short, shallow breaths. Closing his eyes, Scorpius mentally slapped himself. He had to calm down. After all, he was a _Malfoy_. His family had done this for hundreds of years. Why wouldn't he do just as well as any of them? The long line of Slytherins in his family should calm him down. He just _knew_ that the sorting hat would place him in the same house as his father, and his father before him. So he had nothing to worry about.

Somewhere outside a whistle blew. Inside, a very blonde eleven-year old boy threw up in the small bathroom connected to his empty traincompartment. Well, at least it had been empty when he ran to throw up his insides. As he walked back, paler than ever, a boy his age stood right by the door. He looked very unsure if he should stay, but when he noticed Scorpius his face lit up with a smile.

"Hello!" He reached out his right hand. "I thought this compartment was empty, but I guess not."

Scorpius shook the boy's hand, not knowing what to say. "Hm. Well, obviously not."

The boy just kept smiling, as if Scorpius had told him something highly amusing. Apparently he had decided to stay, as he sat down across from where Scorpius had been sitting before. A moment of awkward silence passed before he started talking again.

"I'm really nervous."

_Well, keep it to yourself like the rest of us,_ Scorpius thought to himself. But he just nodded and sat down again. He hadn't realised he had been standing up the whole time. A slight pink colour tinted his cheeks. He really hated this. Having to talk to people he didn't know, or even had the desire to know. How his head acted like a black void in situations like these. The dark-haired boy had obviously decided to ignore his company's silence, and carried on with the conversation.

"Do you know which house you'll get placed in?" He sat at the edge of his seat, fidgeting with his hands. "I mean, you never know for sure, but I just _know _I'll get placed in Slytherin."

Scorpius looked at him. For some reason he sounded as if being placed in Slytherin was equivalent to getting stabbed in the eye with a pencil.

"Where do you want to get placed, then?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice.

"My dad was in Gryffindor, and my mom for that matter. My older brother is as well. But I guess Ravenclaw would be pretty cool."

"But if your entire family are Gryffindors, why are you so sure you'll end up in Slytherin?" Scorpius wasn't quite sure why he asked. He didn't really care about the answer.

"I just know."

I few minutes passed without any of them saying anything. Scorpius wished he was sure to be placed in Slytherin. He would gladly take his company's problem off his hands. What was he thinking? Of course he was going to end up in Slytherin. These thoughts were cut short when the other boy suddenly lit up with a smile again. Scorpius instantly looked at him, even though he hadn't even made a sound.

"I'm Albus, by the way."

Scorpius couldn't help but laugh. "Albus?"

"Yes." He looked really proud of it. "Why? What's your name?"

"Scorpius."

Now it was Albus' turn to laugh. "Someone named _Scorpius_ finds my name funny?"

Scorpius just shrugged, a slight smile still on his lips.

"I like you, _Scorpius._ If I am placed in Slytherin, I hope you will be too."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

When Scorpius looked outside, after hours on the train, he thought he saw something. Something big. It was a cloudy night, with almost no stars, so he couldn't be sure. But when Albus stared out the window, his eyes wide, Scorpius was certain. They were about to arrive at Hogwarts. Not five minutes later, the train started slowing down. The two boys looked at each other and Scorpius couldn't help but to feel a little excited. Albus asked if they should go out into the corridor, so that they would be among the first to get off the train. The other students seemed to have had the same idea; the corridores were packed with pale, nauseous-looking children, probably first-years, along with older ones. Scorpius couldn't wait until he looked as calm as the more experienced people surrounding him. His stomach was acting up again, but it wasn't all bad. As the Hogwarts express came to a stop at the station, he couldn't help but smile.

The night was cold, but he hardly felt it. Albus tugged at his brand new uniform and pointed in the direction of a big lake.

"Come on! We are taking the boats to school."

Scorpius followed, trying to keep up with his new friend. "How do you know that?"

"My brother told me." Albus said and soon a deep voice called out:

"First years! First years, over here please!"

An enormous man was yelling, his hands cuped over his mouth to make himself heard. Scorpius doubted he needed any help with that. More people had started to gather around the giant, who continued speaking when he asked if they were all here. _As if they would know, _Scorpius thought.

"Welcome to Hogwarts everyone. Now, there's no need to look so scared," he sniggered. No one laughed with him. "Right. Ahem... My name is Rubeus Hagrid, and I'll be escorting you to your new home. If you'll just take place in the boats over there, no more than four people in each boat, and we will be on our way."

Everyone looked around franticly for someone to sit with. Albus dragged Scorpius by his sleave again and they sat down in one of the little boats. A chubby girl with ashy-blonde hair joined them, and a boy wearing big glasses soon followed. Scorpius couldn't help but stare, the glasses made the boys eyes stand out as if he were a bug.

"Alright there Albus?" The giant called out when he went past them in his own boat. Albus just waved at him.

"Do you know him?" the girl spoke for the first time since entering the boat.

"He's a family friend," said Albus. "Hagrid worked here when my parents were students as well."

"I think my father told me about him," Scorpius said. "He always said he was some savage that lived in the woods."

"He's not a savage." Albus smiley face changed as soon as the word had left Scorpius mouth.

"I think he seems nice," the bug-boy said.

"I'm sure he is," Scorpius looked at Albus. "Look, I didn't mean anything by it. My father's just wrong. He usually is."

That seemed to be enough to make Albus forgive him, and before long the boats reached land. At the top of the stairs stood a man, he looked like he was in his mid thirties, and looked at the new students shaking in their boots i front of him.

"You take it from here, professor Longbottom?" Hagrid called from the edge of the lake. The man nodded and the giant headed in to the castle, turning around and smiling reasuringly at the students. When the front gate closed behind him, professor Longbottom spoke.

"Good evening everyone. I am sure you are eager to get sorted in to your houses, but first I will introduce myself."

"He went to school with my dad," Albus whispered to Scorpius, who couldn't help but wonder if the boy knew every faculty member on school grounds.

"My name is Neville Longbottom. I will escort you in to the great hall, where you will be sorted. I will also have the privelige to se all of you in Herbology later on." His previously serious face changed as he smiled. Scorpius thought he seemed somewhat familiar. "And before we go in," the man continued. "Welcome to Hogwarts!"

The group followed him through the frontgate, everybody looking around the enterence hall with open mouths. Even though Scorpius was used to grand houses, he couldn't stop himself from staring at the room they were standing in. Malfoy Manor was an impressive building, but compared to Hogwarts it was like a little tree house. _And we've only seen the entrence hall..._ he thought as they made their way trough the room, heading toward two big doors. Behind them people were talking and laughing, and the knot in Scorpius' stomach felt tighter than ever.

"I hope you are ready," professor Longbottom said to them.

The people inside the Great hall went quiet as soon as the first years entered. They were walking in a line, in alphabetical order, all of them longing for the sorting to be over. The boy in front of Scorpius was sweating like crazy, little drops running down the back of his neck. They came to a stop, and professor Longbottom placed a stool in front of them all. A ragged hat was put on top of it, and as his mother had told him it would, it started singing. Several of the people in the line jumped as they first heard the hat. Probably muggle-born, Scorpius guessed. He supposed a singing hat would be a bit of a surprise if you were new to magic.

When it had finnished, professor Longbottom started calling out their names. One by one they sat down on the stool, the hat on top of their head, all looking extremely relived when it cried out where they belonged. All to soon professor Longbottom called out:

"Malfoy, Scorpius!"

He swallowed hard and made his way over to the hat. Before he sat down he looked over at the line, Albus confused face cathcing his eye. _"Malfoy?" _the dark-haired boy mouthed in his direction, then Scorpius had the hat placed on his head and the room disapeared.

_"Well, what do we have here?" _the hat whispered in his ear. _"Draco Malfoy's son, this shouldn't be very difficult at all. _Scorpius relaxed a little. It was going to place him in Slytherin.

_"I _could_ do that," _the hat continued, as if it had heard what he was thinking. It probably had. _"But somehow, I get the feeling that you are not like your father. No, I am sensing some doubt in you, young Malfoy. Am I right?" _

Scorpius shivered. "_I don't know," _he answered the hat in his head. _"It's your job to sort me, not mine."_

The hat breathed out, in a short laugh. _"Oh, really? You think you don't have any part in this decision?"_

_"Exactly."_

_"Well, then I guess you should join your brothers and sisters in SLYTH..."_

_"Wait!" _Scorpius froze. He didn't know why he had done that. By the time the hat spoke again, Scorpius vas breathing hard, sweating almost as much as the boy who had stood in front of him before.

_"Just as I thought," _whispered the sorting hat. _"Now, shall we continue? You are very bright, Malfoy. Very bright indeed. I think you would do very well in... RAVENCLAW!"_

Judging by the cheers coming from the Ravenclaw-table, the hat had announced its decision out loud. Scorpius was officially sorted, and all he could think about was what his father would say.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

As he made his way over to the Ravenclaw table, the sorting continued. Scorpius sat down next to a slightly older boy, who shook his hand enthusiastically. The line at the front of the room was considerably shorter than it had been moments before, but Scorpius hardly noticed what took place around him. Had he made this choice? Why on earth did he stop the sortinghat when it was about to announce that he belonged in Slytherin? His thoughts were interupted when professor Longbottom called out "Potter, Albus!" The room went comletely quiet. _Potter? _Scorpius looked in the direction of the sortinghat, and there he was. Albus sat down and had the hat placed on top of his head. Surely his new friend wasn't related to Harry Potter. During his entire life, Scorpius had listened to his father talk about _the boy who lived. _It had always been made clear that the Potters were scum, and no better than anybody else. Despite the respect and love the rest of the wizarding world seem to have for the legendary Harry Potter, Scorpius father did not share that view.

"RAVENCLAW!" the sortinghat bellowed across the room, and the students exploded with applause.

Scorpius watched as Albus stood up and made his way over to their table. He shot a look over at the Gryffindor table, where an older boy with red hair smiled at him. Scorpius realised it was probably his brother.

"You're a _Malfoy_?" Albus said to him as soon as he sat down at his side.

"Never mind me being a Malfoy," Scorpius replied. "You are a Potter for Merlins sake!"

Albud shrugged. "So what? You'd think people would be used to having a Potter at the school again, my brother is a bloody third-year."

The two boys were interrupted by some of their fellow Ravenclaw students, who all wanted to talk to the son of Harry Potter. Scorpius was thankful when the table started filling up with food and drinks, giving him the chance to stuff his face and return to his thoughts.

Scorpius first week at his new home was, to say the least, different. He knew he was a bit spoilt, and working hard wasn't something he was used to. Neither was sharing a room with four other boys. But it wasn't all the classes or the homework that felt most odd. It was the fact that people tried to approach him, asked him if he wanted to sit with them at dinner, that threw him off. And so, for the first time in his life, Scorpius started to make some friends. However, he couldn't shake the gnawing in his stomach. He knew he should. Since that first night, Albus had been avoiding him. Or at least he thought so; maybe the Potter-boy was just busy making friends of his own. He was very popular amongst the other students, not just with the Ravenclaws. Scorpius often saw him with his brother, James, in the hallways. The fact that Albus was only a first year didn't seem to bother the older boy, or his friends for that matter. Actually, the two brothers seemed to have friends from all the years. Helping them with their schoolwork, talking about quidditch (apparently James was keeper on the Gryffindor team), and over all seeming to enjoy their company. But Albus hadn't said a word to Scorpius all week.

He didn't really know why it bothered him. It was a good thing! His father wouldn't be very happy if his son were to be friends with Harry Potters son. Besides, all the new classes and books and homework they all had to get through kept Scorpius quite busy. He quickly found an interest in potions and transfiguration. And even though professor Binns was as boring as they come, Scorpius was one of the few to actually pay attention in history-class. The library soon became one of his favourite places on school grounds, and he often went there to explore the thousands of interesting titles that lived on the enormous shelves.

On the first Saturday since arriving at Hogwarts, Scorpius was looking for a book the fourth-years used in transfiguration. He figured it would be quite an interesting read. As he browsed the shelves, in the pretty much empty library, he saw a head of black hair sitting at a table, scribbling away at a long piece of parchment. Scorpius walked up to the boy and sat down across from him.

"Getting a late start on the paper for professor Binns?" he asked with a smirk on his face. He wiped his sweaty palms on his robe and swallowed hard. Maybe Albus wouldn't even answer him.

His classmate looked up, slightly annoyed. "I went to look at the quidditch try-outs yesterday." A few ink-drops stained his paper as he spoke. "I completely forgot about this stupid paper. Who cares about the history of the magical tea-pot anyway?"

"Maybe you should have asked to be sorted in to Gryffindor instead when you had the chance," Scorpius said.

"And why is that?" Albus started writing again.

"It's just that you seem more interested in sports than studying."

The corner of Albus' mouth twitched, as if he was about to smile. "I'm not interested in studying," he looked up at Scorpius before he continued. "I am interested in learning."

"Then you have to study."

This time he actually smiled. "Give it a rest, all right? It's only one paper." When Scorpius didn't answer he said: "Are you just going to watch me, or are you going to be useful?"

Scorpius smiled and moved so that he could se what Albus was writing. For the next hour they finished the paper, well, Albus did most of the work. Scorpius just listened to the other boy, as he read aloud as he wrote. It was actually quite fun.

When they walked back to the commonroom Albus said:

"It wanted to do it."

"Who wanted to do what?" Scorpius furrowed his brows.

"The sortinghat. You said I ought to have asked to be placed in Gryffindor," Albus explained. "Well, it wanted to."

"So why are you in Ravenclaw?"

Albus seemed to think of what to say. A moment's silence passed between them before he spoke.

"I just wanted to be."

They said nothing else as they entered the Ravenclaw commonroom. Scorpius could see why Albus wouldn't want to be sorted in the same house as the rest of his family. After all, wasn't that the reason Scorpius himself had chosen to stop the sorting hat a week before? He understood that now, that he wanted something for himself. Not following in the footsteps of his father. Being a part of something because he as a person belonged there, not because his family history said so.

That night Scorpius sat down in his favorite sofa in front of the fireplace, with a book in his hand. His friend Fiona, a small girl almost as blond as himself, sat down next to him with a book of her own. She smiled at him, and then got lost in her reading. In the center of the room, Albus was surrounded with boys and girls while he and a chubby fourth year played a very lively game of wizard's chess. They were all laughing and giving the players advice on how to proceed. After a few minutes, Albus' shot up from his seat, hands in the air, grinning from ear to ear. Apparently he was the victor. He seemed to notice that Scorpius was watching and turned to look at him. He smiled, only to turn back to his group of spectators. Scorpius returned to his book.

At least they weren't ignoring each other anymore. He knew that shouldn't make him happy, but it did. To hell with what his father would think, Scorpius wanted to be Albus' friend.

How odd it was. Having friends.


End file.
